US consumers keep spending despite high prices and their own gloomy outlook. Can it last?

A flow of recent data from the U.S. government has made one thing strikingly clear: A surge in consumer spending is fueling strong growth, demonstrating a resilience that has confounded economists, Federal Reserve officials and even the sour sentiments that Americans themselves have expressed in opinion polls. Many households have been pulling money from a shrinking pool of savings. The “death of the consumer” and an ensuing recession have been forecast by most economists for at least a year.